Leveraging BVLOS Operations

Leveraging drone operation economically means using all the capabilities of a pre-programmed flying robot. And to qualify leverage for today and the future, it is important to distinguish between different modes of operation. While in some cases a pilot is and will remain necessary (e.g. the active search for damages during inspection), making the human-in-the-loop obsolete will increase the overall efficiency of drone operation even more.

So, to highlight how much impact BVLOS operations can have on the use of drone technology, let’s make use of an analogy.

In the same way that a washing machine can replace manual washing, a drone can replace delivery by a person. The first step for both the drone delivery and the washing machine would still require manual operation of the device by a person. “VLOS operation” would entail a person monitoring speed and temperature of the wash (or the flight of the drone), and actively controlling the sequence from pre-wash to wash to spin cycle (or the flight path from A to B to C). Meanwhile “BVLOS operation” would mean that the person can sit away from the machine/drone without looking at it, but still has to actively control the entire process.

“VLOS-on-waypoints” operation would be equivalent to a pre-programmed wash or flight, yet the person still has to be present and visually monitor each sequence to ensure that everything works properly. “BVLOS on waypoints” would entail monitoring the process from afar but being able to intervene if necessary. The highest level of replacement would be “BVLOS and fully automated", meaning that the process starts and stops by itself without any input from an operator. This is what most of us are currently used to in terms of washing machines, and this is what an ideal drone delivery would look like, but we are not there yet on the latter case. Full automation and safely taking human operators out of the equation will allow for the most productivity and profitability of using drones for all types of business applications.

Find out more about the BVLOS Operations Market in our report: